Sticky Situations
by rizzlebarry
Summary: A collection of one-shots in which Jane finds herself trapped in compromising circumstances with the woman she is secretly in love with. Maura, who is blissfully unaware of Jane's passionate feelings towards her, inadvertently drives Jane mad with the positions she puts them in. Will the oblivious Dr. Isles realize what is going on? Will Jane finally break and confess the truth?
1. Attire for the Boudior

**1. Attire for the Boudoir **

Jane Rizzoli was a tough woman. Her career called for it. Her personality demanded it. She preferred to remain in control of every aspect of her life, and usually the people in it as well. Ever since she was a little girl in school, she hated being told what to do and she always made a point to make her own decisions in her professional life as well as her personal life.

Jane was a proud, confident woman who took orders from no one. Unfortunately, there was one exception to the immovable personal strength that governed her life: Maura Isles, her greatest weakness. Maura had a certain way of making Jane do anything that she wanted and was the only person that was able to force Jane to abandon her badass attitude.

All Maura had to do was execute a slight head tilt, narrow her eyes and she would instantly get her way. Or pout. That pout was irresistible. Jane always wondered how and why she let someone get away with bossing her around so successfully. It didn't matter if it was something as simple as wearing high heels, or something as significant as how to treat her brother's baby mama, Jane would always find her strong will dissolve under Maura's influence. Her stubborn mind would be set, but next thing she knew, she'd be bending to do whatever Maura wished. Every time she got into a situation like this, she would resolutely think, _"Okay. This time, sure. But next time? I will not give in. Never again."_ However, when the time came again for Maura to convince her to do something that she didn't want to do, her resolve never lasted more than a few minutes. It was completely ridiculous, but something she had grown accustomed to over the years.

At first, Jane was perplexed by her own change in behavior around Maura. She tried forever to pinpoint the reason Maura could control her so effortlessly. For years, she conjured up thousands of desperate explanations, but eventually, she was forced to admit to herself that she cherished Maura's presence in her life as more than just a friend. Over the years, and after everything that they had been through together, Jane was dismayed to discover that she had fallen in love with Maura. She had fallen in love with every adorable quirk. She had fallen in love with her incomparable compassion. She had even fallen in love with every flaw. Prior to meeting Maura, Jane had never even remotely considered pursuing a relationship with a woman. The idea of being with a woman was still extremely unexpected and terrifying, but she found that she constantly longed to experience the softness of Maura's skin. She longed to smell her elegant hair. She longed to kiss her perfect nose and to taste her alluring lips. She wanted to be the one to hold her at night. She was confused, but she knew one thing for sure: she wanted Maura Isles desperately.

Jane could chase down any homicidal maniac without a second thought, but telling Maura how she truly felt about her was the most frightening thing she could imagine. She just couldn't do it. Not yet. For now, she settled for spending as much time as she could with her and not bothering to hide her distaste whenever a new man waltzed into Maura's life.

Sometimes, Jane thought Maura might feel the same way about her, but as brave as she was in every other aspect in her life, she knew she would never be courageous enough to make the first move. She drove herself crazy attempting to interpret every move Maura made; searching for any indication that Maura loved her back.

This power Maura wielded over her annoyed Jane to no end, but it was a cycle she knew she would never be able to break. Today was their day off, and Maura insisted that they spend it shopping together. After the usual routine-Jane whining, Maura pleading and eventually getting her way-they set off to Newbury Street for a day of shopping. And to make matters more objectionable for Jane, Maura had also convinced Jane to let her drive.

"I hate it when you drag me out here," Jane grumbled from the passenger's seat as they drove down the road.

Maura, who was not one bit bothered by Jane's whining, smiled and said, "You always complain when I take you shopping, but you always end up enjoying yourself."

"I hate shopping." Jane continued to moan. She looked at Maura out of the corner of her eye and, seeing that her griping wasn't being heeded, heaved a sigh and added, "I suppose I do enjoy the company though."

Maura turned to her and beamed, a sight that always made Jane's day. "See? You love it." she chuckled flirtatiously.

Jane simply smiled and shook her head in amazement. Still set on being a party pooper, Jane eyed the woman sitting next to her, noting her fancy shoes and designer dress. "Don't you have enough clothes, anyway?"

"Oh… Jane," Maura lectured with mock seriousness, "One can never have enough clothes." She added a wink and laughed lightly. Jane's stomach fluttered at the mere sound of Maura's laugh.

They exited Maura's car and began walking down the street, occasionally pausing to view something, but mainly window shopping and sharing pleasant conversation. While they were chatting, Jane thought to herself how beautiful Maura was today. Her soft blonde curls fluttered around her face in the light breeze as her features lit up with laughter at Jane's jokes.

Maura grasped Jane's forearm suddenly. "Oh, let's go in here." she said as they passed a store called Agent Provocateur. The display in the front window featured three lady-mannequins sporting nothing but provocative undergarments.

Jane made a face and muttered, "Ugh!" as she reluctantly trailed after her friend, who had already entered the building.

Maura turned back to her dissatisfied shopping partner and whispered, "I want something new for the _boudoir._ I have a date tomorrow; with that nice man I met at the Café? Remember?" She grinned excitedly.

"Oh, yes." Jane muttered dejectedly. She rolled her eyes.

Maura stopped walking. "What? You didn't like him?" she asked, obviously sincerely concerned over Jane's opinion.

Jane clicked her tongue and answered, "You mean the doofus who kept laughing at his own jokes?" She wrinkled her nose. "Um. No. Not really."

"He did not!" Maura defended. Receiving an incredulous look from Jane, she continued, "So what? I thought he was cute. Besides, it's been a little while since I've… entertained." When Jane remained silent, she leaned in and unnecessarily added, "I mean sexually."

"I know what you meant!" Jane growled irritably while childishly thrusting her fists down by her hips.

Maura flashed her an innocent smile and began to search through racks of intimate apparel. Jane, still teeming with jealously, absent-mindedly followed after her, ignoring the merchandise. Jane preferred a more sporty type of undergarment rather than the extravagant lacey ones that were found here.

Maura was either completely unaware of Jane's hatred of her dates, or she was extremely good at teasing her; Jane could never tell. "You know," Maura said casually, "I'm sure Michael has a friend for you." She removed a lacy, see-through slip from a rack and held it up against Jane's body. "Should I ask him?"

Jane frowned and batted the hanger away crossly. "No, Maura."

Maura tilted her head reproachfully and hung the skimpy article of clothing back up. "Jane, you haven't had sex in months, even longer than it's been for me. Do I have to explain the benefits again?"

"Um…A: I really don't think that's any of your… business." Jane muttered, "and B: You've only told me like billion times about the stupid endorphins and oxycotton."

"Oxytocin." Maura quickly corrected, hiding a smile at Jane's purposeful mistake.

"Whatever." Jane dismissed.

"I'm just saying. Your mood could be at a greatly elevated level if-"

"Drop it, Maura." Jane interrupted darkly. She was in no mood to continue this topic of conversation.

Maura complied, giving little shrug and continuing to shop. "Alright, then help me find something sexy."

Jane's frown deepened and she wished they were in any other store doing anything else. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, but Maura didn't seem to notice.

They spent the next ten minutes searching through the multitudes of merchandise—or rather, Maura searched while Jane grudgingly followed. Every once in a while Maura would force Jane to provide her opinion on something she found, and each time she mumbled a dismissive, "Yeah, that one's fine," while never really looking closely at the lingerie Maura was holding up to herself.

Jane tried not to glance around the store at the mannequins, given that her imagination kept involuntarily wandering and trying to envision what Maura would look like in the various outfits. Each time this happened, she literally had to shake her head to rid her mind of the images it was conjuring up.

_I wonder what she'd look like in that lacey thing… No! Stop it!_ Then a few minutes later, _I bet she'd look so hot in that… Quit it! _She made it a few more minutes until the thoughts came crawling back. _Good lord, she would kill me in that… Holy shit! Stop! _Then, once she finally convinced her disobedient brain to refrain from picturing Maura in the lingerie, she began to imagine what she'd look like _without_ the lingerie.

"God dammit!" she cursed with another shake of her head, this time out loud.

Maura looked at her with deep concern and asked, "What's wrong, Jane?"

Jane paused for a moment, then flatly said, "Nothing. I'm fine."

Not convinced, Maura placed a caring hand on her lower back and inquired, "Are you sure?" The physical contact sent shivers down Jane's spine and her heart was melted by the expression of pure compassion on Maura's face.

"No... I mean, yes I'm fine. I think maybe I need some air. Do you mind?" she motioned outside with both thumbs.

"Oh. Of course not," Maura murmured, still looking worried. She carefully slid her hand off of Jane's back as the other woman turned to leave the building. Jane felt Maura's eyes follow her as she briskly walked out of the store and into the crisp fall air. She felt guilty for abandoning her friend, but she desperately needed to get a hold of herself, and getting some distance was the only way that she could see that happening. She paced on the sidewalk for a few moments before leaning her back against the wall and rubbing her forehead with aggravation. She laughed aloud at her own stupidity, wondering how it was possible to be so happy and so miserable at the same time. Her hopeless attraction to Maura was worsening by the day.

After a few minutes, she felt her phone vibrate and glanced at the screen, finding a text from Maura reading, "I believe I require your assistance." Jane sighed, propelled herself off the wall, and strode back into the store. She glanced around, looking for Maura but not seeing her anywhere. As she passed the fitting area one of the curtains shifted as Maura's head poked out.

"Hey, come in here and help me." Maura whispered and motioned with the hand that wasn't holding the curtain.

"Um… With what exactly?" Jane wondered cautiously.

"My zipper is caught." Maura explained. When Jane remained rooted in the same spot, she impatiently added, "Come on!"

Jane looked around before ducking behind the fabric to join her friend in the tiny enclosure. Without delay, Maura turned her back to Jane, revealing a wide-open dress opening and waited expectantly for her to assist her. Jane ran her eyes over Maura's exposed skin before awkwardly closing the distance between them.

"I adore this dress, but the zipper is getting really worn out."

"I honestly don't think I've ever seen you wear this one." Jane admitted. The back of her hand gently brushed silky skin as she reached inside the dress to disentangle the fabric from the teeth of the zipper. She was actively trying to keep her distance, but the zipper was far too stubborn and she shifted her body directly against Maura's to obtain a better angle. Her mind began racing due to their close proximity and she was starting to doubt her own self-control. Her face was almost touching the back of Maura's hair, and she inhaled a sweet aroma. Her hand slipped and her finger was pinched painfully, causing frustration with the little metal zipper to momentarily eclipse the sexual tension she was feeling. "God, it's really stuck. How the hell did you do this?"

Maura, who was patiently standing still, replied, "I have no idea. I was just trying to put my clothes back on…"

Jane pulled as hard as she could on the little piece of metal "It's… stuck." She let go of it and massaged her sore fingers.

"Darn it," sighed Maura. "Here." She suddenly moved her hands to the dress straps and slid them off her shoulders. The dress dropped to the floor, leaving her standing in front of an alarmed Jane with only a bra and panties. She deftly stepped out of the dress and bent down to scoop it up, unintentionally brushing her ass against Jane's leg. Jane's breath caught in her throat as she uncontrollably took in the view that was presented before her.

Maura, oblivious to Jane's temporary paralysis, turned to face her while working hard at the problematic zipper. Jane's eyes dropped to her chest, accentuated by a black push-up bra. Maura had never been very modest, and she didn't think twice about being almost naked in front of her best friend. Jane swallowed hard, silently cursing this situation she found herself trapped in. They were still standing inches away from each other. Maura continued working diligently at her task, too busy to notice that Jane was staring at her.

Jane noticed that the pace of her breathing had quickened and she gazed at Maura's face, scrunched with concentration. Her heart overflowed with adoration. She couldn't take her eyes off of the other woman, and was rudely jolted out of her trance when Maura growled in frustration.

"I can't. Here," she shoved the dress into Jane's hands. "You try again." As the dress was being passed between them, Jane felt the warmth of Maura's soft hands against her own. Forcing her focus on the dress again, she yanked at the fabric roughly until the zipper popped free of it's entanglement.

"Tada!" she sang as she presented the garment back to its owner. Maura took it and cheered, bouncing on her toes with excitement. Jane made sure to keep her eyes averted and began stepping out of the small changing area muttering, "Okie dokie, see you… uh, out there."

"No, wait!" Maura chirped while pulling her dress up her body, "You can help me decide. Ope-first…" she turned her back and gestured to Jane with a playful smile, "Zip me up." She pulled her hair away from her neck and out of the way.

Jane hesitated and started to protest before sighing and smoothly zipping the back of the dress closed. Her hand lingered at the base of Maura's neck. Her heartbeat quickened and she was afraid that the mixture of Maura's aroma, her soft skin, and the unbearably close proximity would cause her instincts and desires to win out over her self-restraint. She lightly touched the back of Maura's neck and gently grazed her skin with her remained still and silent, feeling Jane's body inch close behind her. Slowly, she turned to face Jane, and whispered, "Thank you." They were now face to face and Jane was not sure if she would be able to resist kissing her this time. Maura's eyes moved from Jane's lips to her eyes and gazed into them with a mixture of curiosity and indecision. Jane looked down at the considerably shorter woman and bit one side of her lower lip in apprehension. In her imagination, she was inching slightly closer to Maura by the second. Wait. No, that wasn't her imagination; it was real. Her eyes darted to Maura's throat, watching it tighten as Maura swallowed. Maura looked puzzled. She was probably wondering why Jane hadn't said anything yet. Her lips parted and she cocked her head to the side faintly in a silent question.

Jane cleared her throat with embarrassment and broke their eye contact, looking down at the floor between them. "Uh… which ones did you need help… choosing between?"

"Oh. Um. Right." Maura faltered. She tucked her hair behind her ears and looked around the tiny room in disoriented manner. "Yes, here we go." Regaining her composure, she grabbed two different hangers with evocative bedroom attire.

As Maura held up the different options she was debating between, Jane was tremendously thankful that she hadn't asked her to help her choose what lingerie to buy by modeling them. She was very out of sorts, and her hands were imperceptibly shaking.

"I guess… I guess that one," Jane said, pointing to an elegant lacey slip. It was beautiful, and she knew Maura would look incredible in it, but her stomach dropped when she enviously recalled who was going to be seeing her in it.

"Great!" Maura cheered, and gathered her things to exit the dressing area. She waltzed out to the checkout to purchase her items, blissfully unaware of the tension that she had just caused for her friend.

"Thank you, Jane." Maura said as they walked towards the exit.

"Buy me a beer and we're even." Jane replied with a chuckle, still slightly in shock after that peculiar encounter they had shared.

Maura gave her an extremely unreadable look and stopped before exiting the store. Jane stopped too and looked puzzled. "What?" she asked.

Maura tilted her head pensively, maintaining eye contact and looking deep in thought. Finally, she murmured "I… I don't know. You're just… " She paused to ponder what she wanted to say and exhaled. "I am just really happy that I have you."

Jane's stomach lurched with nervous delight and she felt her eyes light up as the corners of her mouth rose as well. Maura smiled so sweetly at her that she thought her heart might burst. Then, Maura seemed to shake herself out of her stupor and let out a slight giggle as she turned to leave.

"Okay, I am very happy with that purchase." Maura told Jane merrily, obviously unaffected by whatever had just happened between them. She innocently smiled at Jane. "I'm so excited for my date! Yippee!" she sang gleefully as she skipped out the door.

Jane's heart sank. She pouted and dragged her feet after her, sardonically grumbling, "Yippee…"


	2. Dreams VS Reality

**2. Dreams VS. Reality**

It was late on a Saturday night and Jane was at home by herself. She was lounging on her couch with the TV on and Jo Friday was nestled in her lap comfortably. Though she was upset with the fact that Maura was currently on a date, the ache in her heart was dull and commonplace. It was her choice to keep her secret from Maura, so she had learned to tolerate the misery she put herself through. This guy Maura was dating was nothing more than the flavor of the week, and Jane knew that from experience. Any time a man came into Maura's life, he was gone just as quickly as he came, making it much more bearable for Jane to deal with. The only reason she could handle the weight of her secret was because she was nowhere near prepared to risk losing her most valuable relationship by telling the truth.

Jane absentmindedly patted Jo Friday on her head, enjoying a repeat Red Sox game, and was just happy to be home curled up on a comfortable couch. She began drifting off to sleep a little before midnight.

_There was a light knock at the door. Jane rose from the couch to see who was there, peering through the peephole with curiosity. She didn't see anyone. Cautiously, she cracked open the door to take a peek. _

_"Maura?" she asked in a rough, scratchy voice. The fair-haired woman pushed her way into Jane's apartment while delivering a cheery greeting. She strolled past Jane, turning her head back to deliver a stunning smile as she removed her coat and settled onto the couch comfortably. _

_Instead of asking what she was doing here, Jane quietly followed her into the living room and sat next to her. _

_"It's fairly cold outside tonight." Maura told her offhandedly. "The season is changing."_

_Jane tilted her head and smiled at her in confusion. "Why are you talking about the weather?" she slowly inquired. _

_Maura ignored her, instead staring at her own knees and saying, "I love the fall. It may be my favorite season. I become rather meditative in the fall." She paused and raised her eyes to meet Jane's. "I met you in the fall."_

_Before Jane could voice her puzzlement, Maura reached over and took her hand with both of her own. She pulled it towards herself, examining the ghastly scar that marked Jane's dreadful past. She gently ran her thumb over the old wound with a sympathetic expression. After a few moments, she bowed her head and softly pressed her lips against Jane's hand. Jane watched her with a stunned silence, feeling her lungs begin to take shallower breaths and her heartbeat quicken._

_"Wh-what are you doing?" Jane stammered in a low voice._

_Disregarding the question, Maura parted her lips slightly without breaking the contact with the back of Jane's hand, releasing bursts of hot air against her flesh. She firmly squeezed Jane's fingers with her hands and brushed her lips against her skin, moving up to her wrist. There, she placed a tentative kiss, lingering for several seconds._

_"Maura…" Jane murmured quietly. She realized she was trembling faintly and wondered if Maura could tell._

_Maura stopped and raised her head, but kept her eyes down. She licked her lips and gradually lifted her eyes to Jane's face. Jane was still unsure of what to do or say; she remained frozen with her mouth slightly agape. Her dark brown eyes desperately searched Maura's for any answers. Jane suddenly thought that they were unbearably close to one another._

_"Jane," Maura said softly, "May I kiss you?"_

_Jane nodded dazedly._

_Maura took a breath and leaned in unfalteringly, lightly joining her lips with Jane's. It only lasted a second, but Jane felt as if it had lasted an hour. Maura's lips were so warm and smooth against her own. Maura remained about an inch away, evaluating Jane's reaction carefully. When Jane didn't pull away, she decided to kiss her again, this time making a very solid connection. Jane found herself intoxicated by the sweet taste of Maura's lips and their perfect texture. She felt Maura barely use the tip of her tongue and then she made the tiniest sighing sound._

_They broke apart slowly, both breathing heavily, and smiled at each other in amazement. A nervous laugh escaped from Jane's throat and she wrapped her arms around Maura. Maura rested her head on Jane's shoulder and closed her eyes, breathing out fully._

_Jane stared at the TV screen in a daze, too afraid to say anything. She reflected on the wonderful kiss as Maura sighed and relaxed into Jane's body snugly. They sat in comfortable silence, listening to each other's breathing and both contemplating the situation. Jane was calm and happy, simply glad to have Maura so near, and they both dozed off contently._

Jane felt an unexpected vibration and she was jerked out of her slumber. She sat up and looked around incoherently, gradually realizing that she had been dreaming and that the vibration had been a text. Her mind was still reeling from the disturbingly realistic dream she had been having. She fumbled with her phone while smacking her lips and squinted at the bright screen with sleep-blurred vision.

It was Maura. "Are you still awake?" the message read.

She blinked a few times, then typed out a simple reply: "Yep."

A few seconds passed and the phone vibrated again. "Would you mind if I came over?"

"Yes."

There was no response. Jane reviewed her last message and quickly corrected herself by typing. "By that I meant yes, come over. No, I do not mind."

A response arrived almost immediately. "Alright. I'll be there soon."

Jane placed her phone on the table next to the couch, marveling at the phenomenon of receiving a message from the very person she had been dreaming about. She stretched and yawned, still trying to shake off the intense feeling her dream had produced in her. That kiss—it had felt incredibly real, nothing like the other countless times she had imagined kissing Maura. She took a deep breath and stood up, impulsively pacing around her couch while biting the side of her thumb until she heard a knock at the door.

She slid across the room in her socks and opened the door without checking who was there. Maura stood out in the hallway, looking flawless as usual. Jane smiled and murmured, "Hey." She gestured for her to step inside with one hand, while rubbing one of her eyes with the other.

"Hello," Maura said as she passed through the doorway. She grimaced at her apologetically. "I'm so sorry if I woke you."

"No, no, it's fine, I was just-" she pointed at the television in an unspoken explanation.

"Wow, does baseball play all year round?" Maura asked innocently as she took off her jacket.

"Uh, no. Season's over. It's an old game." Jane explained with a chuckle. She walked into the kitchen, suddenly craving a beer and added, "How was your date?" She glanced at her watch, seeing it was just past one in the morning.

Maura followed her to the kitchen area and leaned up against the counter. "He was…" Maura scrunched her nose, "I suppose the word I'm looking for is inadequate."

Jane leaned into the refrigerator to conceal a snicker while she was grabbing a beer. She wiped the smile off of her face in time to turn and face Maura, offering her a beer as well. "Sorry, it's all I have." Maura wordlessly accepted it. "And… Sorry about your guy."

"It's not a significant loss. I just wanted to have some fun." Maura admitted with a shrug.

Jane took a swig of refreshing beer, nodding as she swallowed. "If his performance in bed was anything like his joke telling abilities, then…" Maura frowned and nodded. "Oh. Yikes…"

"He was pretty humiliated. I couldn't go to sleep after I got him out of my house." Maura continued, "So, here I am." She took a small sip of beer and nervously added, "Are you sure it's not too late?"

"Of course it's not," Jane assured her. "Here, let's go sit down." She motioned to the couch behind Maura. As they settled onto the couch, Jane's dream reappeared freshly in her mind. She shook the thought away as she sipped her beer again. They spent about an hour talking about random things. Maura didn't mention her date again, which Jane was pleased about.

Jane mindlessly channel surfed as they chatted, eventually stopping on a black and white movie channel. The movie wasn't familiar to her, and after a few seconds she realized that the dialogue was in French. She spent the next forty minutes making Maura laugh uncontrollably by incorrectly translating what the characters were saying to one another. Even after all that time, Jane never got sick of this game, and neither did Maura.

"Ah, but I cannot be with you, François!" Jane cried, butchering a French accent, "Because you slapped my grandmother with a catfish."

"It is not my fault, Jacqueline! She called me a turtle _testicle!" _

_"I am running away to join the Bavarian circus folk. I will become-"_

The word _Fin _appeared on the screen, and Jane moaned, "Aww, it's over?" Maura was still laughing heartily.

As the end credits began to roll, Maura collapsed sideways onto Jane and placed her head on her shoulder exhaustedly. She wiped the tears out of her eyes as her giggles subsided. She took a giant breath and let out one last chuckle. "That was… the best." she sighed.

Jane switched the television off, beaming with pride at her ability to make Maura laugh. She found she was extremely talented at this, and it was all worth it because she was in love with the sound of Maura's laughter. "Didja like that?" she asked jovially.

"I did. You wore me out." Maura muttered sleepily, not able to keep her eyes open any longer.

Jane sat there blissfully, the person she cared for most in the world right where she belonged at her side. She closed her eyes involuntarily, suddenly realizing how late it was. Maura must have been exhausted, because she was slowly but surely drifting off to sleep. Minutes passed before Jane was sure she had fallen sound asleep. Jane worked up enough courage to wrap her arm around Maura, and lightly stroked her arm once she had. She drowsily smiled as a slumbering Maura snuggled even closer against her body. At least one part of her dream had come true.


	3. The Doctor's New Hobby

**3. The Doctor's New Hobby**

Every muscle in Jane's body was aching, although she was glowing with the satisfaction of putting away yet another murderer. She and her colleagues had just closed an enormously tough case involving a grizzly double homicide, a long, sleepless night of detecting and ultimately, a very dangerous culprit. She had just made it back to the police station after chasing the suspect for blocks, and eventually wrestling him to the ground. Though she had gotten roughed up a bit in the process, it wasn't a new experience for her. Her eyes were burning from exhaustion, but adrenaline was coursing through her body as she energetically limped to the elevator. She jabbed the down button and set off to inform Maura of their success in catching the bad guy.

Jane found Maura in her heavily decorated office bent over a stack of paperwork on her desk. No matter what was going on in Jane's mind, whenever she saw Maura her thought process was fleetingly interrupted by something to the effect of, "_God, she looks beautiful today."_ Taking a brief moment to adoringly smile at the deeply concentrating doctor, she hung back in the doorway. Maura's light, wavy hair dangled down around her face gracefully. She was quickly scribbling notes and she licked her lips attractively in her profound state of focus. Jane admired her beauty and grace, just the sight of her filling her heart with a strange mixture of longing and serenity. Soon, Maura sensed her presence and glanced up.

"Oh, you're back!" Maura exclaimed, her face lighting up with joy. She flashed the smile that never failed to cause Jane's heart to skip a beat. Maura leaned back in her office chair and took a sip of her tea. She had obviously been extremely engrossed in her work. Jane shuffled into the room carefully as Maura began to ask how their pursuit had gone. "Were you right? Did you-" She suddenly noticed how Jane was walking and hiding a wince of pain. She shot to her feet, crying, "Oh, Jane! What happened?" She hurried around her desk and crossed the room to Jane's side.

Jane had already flopped herself down on the couch. She looked up in confusion as Maura rushed over. "What? Oh… It's nothing, I'm fine. Just a little sore from running." She readjusted her sitting position with a grunt. "And tackling."

Maura seemed only partly reassured, but didn't fuss over Jane anymore-at least out loud. She sat next to her on the couch and said, "So, I would be correct to presume that you caught him?"

"Yes. Yes, we caught him." Jane boasted with pride. "Another psycho off the streets."

Jane's overconfident demeanor comforted Maura greatly, and she sighed with relief. She scrutinized Jane's face while gently laying a hand on her back and murmured, "You must be so exhausted. I still have a lot of work to do, but you ought to get some sleep. Would you like me to give you a ride home?"

"No, I might just hang out here for a little while, if that's okay." Jane replied, slouching lower on the couch and making eye contact with Maura. "I am not as tired as I should be."

"Your adrenal glands most likely produced enough epinephrine to trick you into thinking that, but you have been up for over twenty-four hours. Your body needs sleep," Maura lectured. Receiving an apathetic stare from Jane, she sighed and relented, "Alright, I'll allow you to stay here while I finish up. But then I'm taking you home."

Jane breathed a laugh at Maura's persistent concern and mumbled, "Deal," She massaged her stiff shoulder tenderly. "Anything interesting happen while I was out beating the crap out of wrongdoers?"

Maura had placed her hands on her knees to push herself onto her feet, but now she remained sitting and gazed admiringly at the woman next to her. She unintentionally ignored the question she was asked. "Have I ever told you how unbelievably brave I think you are?" she wondered in a calm awe. Her hand instinctively moved to Jane's thigh and gave it a tiny squeeze.

Jane blushed and an absurd smile crept onto her face. Her heart just couldn't stand it when Maura gazed at her with such adoration. Maura's touch sent electricity shooting through her body. It was moments like this that drove her absolutely crazy; moments she swore that Maura must harbor feelings for her, too. Instead of getting her hopes up, she played it cool as usual. "Yes, Maura, you tell me that all the time." she informed her with an awkward chuckle. They smiled sweetly at each other for a few moments until Jane felt as though her love for Maura was dangerously transparent. She averted her gaze to her lap and demurely changed the subject. "I am still kinda riled up," she mumbled, shaking out her lithe hands restlessly.

Maura sensed the sudden tension, but mistook it as the product of a tough day at a tough job. "You are exhibiting acute signs of stress, Jane." Maura remarked protectively. "Ooh, ooh! I know!" she chirped, animatedly clapping her hands together.

Jane raised her eyebrows and tucked her lips inward, causing deep dimples to appear in her cheeks as she waited expectantly for Maura to reveal her plan.

"Well," Maura energetically explained, "I met this guy at yoga—a really cute guy, actually… named Dominic," she smiled suggestively and Jane rolled her eyes. "Anyway, it turns out he's a Reiki Master and he's been helping me work on learning this additional _métier_ that nicely compliments my meditation techniques."

"Met-yay? What's a met-yay?" Jane asked flatly, mocking Maura's use of foreign terminology and distracting herself from the 'cute guy' reference.

Maura giggled at Jane's lingual ineptitude and short attention span. "_Métier_," she calmly explained, "It's French for trade or skill. Anyway, now I am studying this method of alternative medicine using energy work. In addition to my private lessons, I have read up on it extensively,"She gestured grandly to her stuffed bookshelf, where Jane saw everything from _The Y Incision and Y-O-U _to _Gigantic Land Tortoises of the Sahara _to _The Genealogical Guide to Greek Mythology._

"Reiki is an ancient practice said to cleanse the body of negative energy and promote a natural balance between mind, body and spirit."

"Oh!" Jane exclaimed, pretending to both comprehend and appear interested. She quickly gave up and wrinkled her nose, asking, **"**What is it again?"

"It's called Reiki." Maura repeated, her face bright with the enjoyment of teaching Jane about something she was fascinated with.

Jane stared at her blankly.

"It's a Japanese energy healing technique." Maura continued, "I believe _Reiki_ translates to 'spiritually guided life force energy.' in English."

"Oh, come on, Maura. You know I don't believe in any of that stuff…." Jane scoffed impatiently.

"Please, Jane?" Maura begged, "Just give it a chance, it has incredible influence over stress reduction and relaxation and also promotes healing. That is something you surely require! Plus, I need someone to practice on."

"Uh…" Jane hesitated, completely unsure of what was going on.

"Take off your jacket," Maura ordered, shifting into her notorious bossy mode. She had obviously grown tired of explaining and made the decision that this was happening. Jane opened her mouth to protest, then reluctantly obeyed since she knew she didn't really have another option. Maura was visibly delighted at her command being heeded. "And that." she added, pointing at the gun strapped to Jane's belt. Jane wordlessly obliged. "Now." Maura resumed, "Lie down on your back." When Jane paused suspiciously, she pouted and again whined, "Please, Jane?"

Jane could never deny Maura's wishes, whether she wanted to or not. She allowed Maura to gently lower her down onto her back, placing a pillow beneath her dark curls. Maura got down onto her knees next to the couch.

"What are you going to do?" Jane frightfully asked, her body tense with uncertainty.

"The initiative is to channel energies through my hands and into your body." Maura informed her, "I use those energies to balance the seven major points called _chakras_ on your body: here, here, here, here, here, here, and here." She pointed to different areas on Jane's body as she spoke, ranging from her forehead to her upper thighs. "Every chakra has a corresponding organ in our physical system. I am going to unblock them for you."

"Huh? I don't get it. What-" Jane began to complain.

"I don't want to have a discussion about it, Jane. I just want you to experience it. Please relax." Maura closed her eyes and took a deep breath, preparing to commence her therapeutic task.

"_You_ don't wanna talk? Well, that's a first…" Jane sarcastically muttered under her breath as she settled her body into a more comfortable position and closed her eyes.

Maura frowned and punched her on the arm harshly.

"Ow!" Jane cried, briefly lifting up her head to glare at Maura. She rubbed her arm where it had been struck as she rested her head back onto the pillow. "Was that part of it? 'Cause if it was, I really didn't like it."

"Jane!" Maura sternly scolded, though she was making an effort to suppress amusement. She softened her tone and cooed, "Relax. Close your eyes." Once that was done, she began by suspending both of her hands over the very top of Jane's head, palms down. After a few seconds of silence, she broke and began jabbering again.

"The modernization of this practice is credited to Mikao Usui who re-cultivated it in Japan during the early 20th century."

Jane simply smirked. She knew Maura would never be able to resist spouting her infinite knowledge.

"Now, everyone experiences this differently," Maura softly explained, "but most people sense a warm or hot sensation. Also, you might feel a slight tingling feeling." Her hands slowly drifted down towards Jane's chest. "That just means your chakras are opening up and accepting the energy." She kept her hands steady and maintained their position as she concentrated.

"What in the world would someone think if they walked in here right now?" Jane joked self-consciously. She peeked out through squinted eyes and looked up at Maura only to see that she had her eyes closed and was focused on what she was doing. Having no audience for her comedy, she cleared her throat, closed her eyes, and made an honest attempt at taking this seriously for Maura's sake.

Initially, when Jane realized that Reiki didn't involve Maura touching her, she was relieved because she thought the intimate contact would be too sensual. However, by the time Maura reached the spot directly over her breasts, she began to observe that Maura's hands hovering centimeters away from her body was a great deal more tantalizing. "This is your Heart chakra," Maura explained. She instructed her to keep her eyes closed and her mind relaxed, but Jane couldn't resist peeking and her mind was racing. Eventually, Maura moved her floating palms above Jane's stomach. Even though she never touched her, Jane could sense a wonderful warmth and energy that immediately piqued her sexual arousal. She made an effort to keep calm, but could do nothing to stop her heart from its relentless pounding.

After several minutes, Maura's hands painstakingly floated past Jane's navel, drawing closer to the area of Jane's body that was nearly vibrating with desire. Jane swallowed hard and tried to remain focused on relaxing.

"Is there a Crotch chakra?" she jokingly asked, characteristically using humor to mask her nervousness.

Maura breathed a laugh. "That would be the Sacral chakra which, when balanced, fuels our emotions, creativity and sexuality."

Jane took in a slightly trembling breath and sighed, "Oh." It killed her how enticed she was by the intimacy of Maura's closeness. She sneaked one more peek, this time glancing at Maura's face instead of her hands creeping down her body. She looked peaceful and almost angelic. Maura caught her peeking and gently reminded her to relax. Keeping the image of her beauty in her head, Jane shut her eyes one final time. She took a huge deep breath and within a few minutes, she felt as if she was floating and sinking at the same time. Even her yearning for the woman next to her subsided, replaced by a deep calming sensation. She drifted into a semi-conscience state between sleep and awake. Twenty more minutes passed as Maura continued her session.

Maura ended up spending about ten minutes working on each chakra. The first half had been agonizing for Jane as she watched Maura work, but the second half was over in what seemed like a matter of seconds once she finally shut out the world and her impure thoughts. Eventually, Maura retracted her hands from their position hovering over Jane, murmuring, "How do you feel?"

Jane took a deep breath and blinked her eyes open with a struggle. She silently assessed the condition of her body and searched for her voice. "Actually, pretty good." she admitted with amazement. The look of pure joy and pride that broke out on Maura's face was worth all of the discomfort and strangeness that she had put up with. She smiled as Maura clapped her hands together happily and cheered.

"See? I told you!" Maura gleefully sang, "You look so much better; More calm. More relaxed. More balanced." She helped Jane sit up on the couch again and joined her on the next cushion. Jane felt groggy, and the floating feeling she had experienced was lingering as well. "Thank you for having an open mind, Jane."

Jane felt almost as if she was drunk as she goofily smiled at her friend's pretty face. Her filter was temporarily disabled. "You are amazing, Maura." she murmured worshipfully.

Maura beamed and softly grasped Jane's hand in gratitude. Jane looked down at their joined hands and her heart surged powerfully with feelings. In her lowered state of awareness, she felt more words bubbling up and didn't even have the urge to stop herself. She gently squeezed Maura's hand, gazed into her eyes and more seriously uttered, "You really are the most amazing person I have ever met. I can't imagine what I'd do without you… No, I mean it," she added when Maura modestly denied what she had told her. "I couldn't live without you." Jane confessed, as she put her other hand on top of Maura's to delicately envelop it between her palms.

Maura glanced down at her captured hand curiously, the large smile on her face diminishing by a fraction. "I'm sure you could _live_ without me," she humbly assured her.

"Actually, no." Jane interjected, shaking her head and looking back into Maura's eyes. "No, I couldn't." Her dream-like daze persisted. This was it. The words she had been fighting back for years were advancing, with no terrified thoughts to inhibit them. "Maura," Jane almost whispered as she averted her eyes to their hands again. "Maura, I-"

"Knock, knock!" came a voice from the door. Jane felt Maura extract her hand from her grasp as she looked up to see who was there. It was a tall, middle-aged man. He was dressed in an informal sport coat with jeans and he had curly brown hair and a beard.

"You look surprised to see me." he said tentatively in his deep voice, glancing at first Maura and then Jane. "Did you forget we made plans?"

"Oh! I-" Maura bashfully exclaimed as she stood up to greet him. Apparently, she had forgotten. She looked back and forth between him and Jane, struggling to decide who to address first while stammering, "I'm sorry, I got dist-I'm so sorry, this is my… this is Dominic, my friend from yoga." Dominic waved. "And this is Jane. Rizzoli. Detective Jane Rizzoli."

Jane waved back, casually saying, "Hi. I don't like yoga very much."

Dominic laughed richly at Jane's indiscriminate honesty and said, "Well, it's not for everybody." He turned back to Maura and asked, "Did you still want to…?"

"I am so sorry, I did forget you were coming. Would it be possible to make a rain check? Jane had a rough day, and I was going to take her home, so-"

"No, no, no. Don't worry, I… I'll make Frankie take me home," Jane said, dismissingly waving her hands at Maura's suggestion. She figured the only reason she was able to hide her disappointment was her elevated serenity that lingered from her semi-sleep state. Everything that was happening still felt vaguely like a dream. She was too out of it to feel sad.

After being reassured a few more times, Maura reluctantly agreed and was whisked away by Dominic. She turned back to Jane as she reached the door, still looking concerned, and said, "I'll see you tomorrow."

Jane smiled and nodded.

Once home and alone, Jane flopped onto her bed exhaustedly. It had been a physically and emotionally trying day to say the least. She had gotten the closest she had ever even imagined to telling Maura her true feelings. It had been utterly exhilarating, but she was glad she never got the chance to do it. She was certain that it had been the wrong place and the wrong time to confess her love, but she was becoming more confident that she was not imagining the signs she was receiving from Maura that indicated mutual feelings. Though the normal heartache she felt when keeping her secret was still present, she now had a strange sense of hopeful faith that things might turn around for her someday soon. She wasn't sure if it was because of her lack of sleep, her treatment, or both, but that night, she got the most sound and restful sleep she had ever had. No dreams, but no nightmares.


	4. Sensitive Side-Effects of Sedatives

**4. Sensitive Side-Effects of Sedatives **

"I need a favor." Maura declared as she appeared out of nowhere next to Jane's table at the police station Café. She seemed agitated, bouncing on the balls of her feet as she spoke.

Jane froze and glanced up at her with a sizeable forkful of waffles protruding from her mouth. "Well, good morning to you, too." she mumbled with her mouth full.

"Yes, good morning," Maura replied distractedly, "I might need your help later on today…" she leaned in and lowered her voice. "I need surgery." Jane looked alarmed so she added, "Oral surgery." She took a deep breath and continued, "Apparently, I am part of the miniscule minority of people whose eruption of third molars is significantly delayed and now I must have them removed." She pouted as she sat in the chair across from Jane.

Jane chewed her mouthful of food and swallowed before answering. "Umm… I'm sorry…" She paused, then slowly asked, "Does that mean your wisdom teeth?"

Maura nodded silently, her expression still the ultimate representation of despair. "I never developed them as I was growing up; most people get theirs removed in their early twenties, if at all. I didn't think mine were ever going to come in at all, but here they are! They told me they require extraction as soon as possible because they're going to cause significant problems when they attempt to coexist with my ordinary teeth. After a few days of reading articles and researching the subject to try to prove them wrong, I discovered they are indeed correct. I made an appointment for four 'o'clock this afternoon and I just need someone to make sure I get home after the procedure."

While Maura had been ranting, Jane kept munching on her breakfast. She took in a rather large and untimely mouthful right when Maura had finished and was waiting for her to reply. She mistakenly took Jane's silence as a refusal.

"All you really have to do is pick me up when I'm done," Maura informed Jane quickly, "You don't have to come with. Although…" she paused and made a face, "I am a little bit nervous. I panic a tad when it's me under the knife." She wrung her hands and vaguely hyperventilated.

Jane swallowed another mouthful. "_Under the knife_?" she repeated mockingly, "You are getting teeth pulled, Maura, not a limbotomy."

"They said they can't pull them!" Maura whimpered with fear filled eyes as she pressed a hand to her jaw. She was even anxious enough to fail to correct Jane's inaccurate usage of 'lobotomy'. "The teeth are still fully impacted so they have to surgically cut them out."

Jane was still getting over the shock of her doctor friend's unexpected apprehension. It didn't matter that she had known Maura for over five years; she was still surprised by new quirks and facts about her all the time.

"So what do you think? Would you be able to drive me?" Maura pleaded, yanking Jane out of her inner musings.

"Oh. Well…" Jane thought about it. She suddenly snapped her fingers as she remembered something. "Oh! You know what? This is great!" she exclaimed. "I was supposed to go to this lame BPD charity auction after work; this'll be the _perfect_ excuse to get out of it. Yes! Yes, I will take you."

"Are you sure?" Maura inquired, "Because I can always just ask-"

Jane cut her off abruptly, blurting, "I'm taking you!"

* * *

"I usually love the dentist's office," Maura whispered to Jane over her magazine in the waiting room. She was obviously still apprehensive about her upcoming procedure. Jane secretly loved when Maura acted irrationally; it was refreshing to see her genius friend lose her composure, and she also adored being the one to support and comfort her. Her favorite method to relieve Maura's anxieties was making her laugh, and she was awfully good at it.

"What? Are you crazy?" cried Jane, turning a few disapproving heads in the process. The receptionist looked up, politely smiled, and went back to typing on her keyboard.

Maura lightly backhanded Jane's arm, glanced around the waiting room apologetically and quietly explained, "Dental hygiene was always one of my strong points when I was young. I was always so proud when they would tell me how superbly I'd taken care of my teeth." She tilted her head as she fondly recalled the memory.

Jane gaped at Maura for a brief moment. "You must have been a very special child," she muttered with narrowed eyes. She reached across the table to nab a copy of _Highlights _that a kid had just discarded.

It took Maura a few seconds to recognize Jane's sarcasm. "Well, how were _you_ at brushing and flossing as a child then?" she asked defensively. She was attempting to sound cross, but one corner of her mouth was rising in a smile.

"Oh, horrible!" Jane solemnly responded right away, already paging through the magazine, "I think at one point, my brothers and I were competing to see who could get the most cavities."

Maura giggled out loud now. "That's terrible," she laughed. Then, she turned her attention to the magazine Jane had became immersed in. "'Ages 6-12,'" Maura read aloud from the cover. She frowned to conceal a smirk as she glanced at Jane's face candidly.

Jane flipped over the magazine to see for herself, shrugged, and then continued to flick through it. "It's cool!" she defended, "It's got games and stuff. I used to be obsessed with this magazine when I was-"

"Six to twelve?" Maura finished for her, now openly grinning.

Jane laughed heartily at Maura's plucky teasing. She had no comeback to that one, so instead she asked, "So, since you're getting your wisdom teeth out, does that mean you will be less smart afterwards?"

Maura laughed, "No, unfortunately there is no link between intelligence and ownership of wisdom teeth. You're stuck with me the way I am, Detective."

Jane feigned disappointment and proceeded to show her the games that used to be her favorites in her magazine. "Oh yes, this one is awesome. It's kinda like 'Where's Waldo." Jane explained. Maura looked confused so she backtracked, "You don't know who Waldo is, do you? He's this dude…Okay, you know what?" she shook her head, "Never mind. Not important… Ooh, let's play this game!"

Maura looked at Jane as if she were crazy. Jane simply smiled and silently congratulated herself on the wonderful job she was doing distracting her from the dread of her impending surgery. As she continued entertaining Maura, she noticed that the receptionist kept glancing at them and silently chuckling at Jane's jokes. They continued their silly banter until a woman came out of the back room and called Maura's name.

Maura sighed and got to her feet. Jane reached over and squeezed her hand for encouragement and Maura smiled down at her, whispering, "Thank you, Jane." She followed the woman through the door.

Jane decided she'd talk a walk around outside while she was waiting. Before she left, she approached the check-in desk and asked, "How long do these things normally take? I think I'm going to leave and then come back."

"It'll be about two hours," the woman behind the desk informed Jane. "When you pick her up, she'll be pretty out of it. The effects of the anesthesia should wear off within two to three hours. We'll be sending instructions home with you, too."

"Thank you, I'll be back." Jane told her and turned to leave.

The lady courteously lowered her voice and murmured, "She's really lucky to have a girlfriend like you."

Stunned, Jane spun back around and said, "What?" She wondered if she had misunderstood her statement. It appeared she hadn't. "Ha… I'm not-… We're just friends."

The smile on the receptionists face quickly vanished. "Oh, I'm-I'm sorry!" she stammered with embarrassment, "My mistake. Just… the way you… never mind, I'm so sorry!"

Jane blinked in surprise, thinking, "_Am I really that transparent?" _She laughed at the situation and freed the woman from her uncomfortable guilt by assuring her there was no offense taken whatsoever. She then walked out the door, taking a deep breath and shaking her head to herself amusedly.

* * *

Two hours later, Jane strode back into the dentist's office, not entirely knowing what to expect. The woman at the desk saw her come through the door and picked up her phone to alert her colleagues that Maura's ride had arrived.

Less than a minute later, a very bleary-eyed Maura wobbled out assisted by two hygienists. As soon as she saw Jane, her dulled expression brightened and she gaily mumbled "Jane!" through her slightly puffy cheeks. She put her arm through Jane's and repeated herself absentmindedly saying, "Jane, Jane, Jane." She brought a hand to her inflamed jaw and muttered, "Pain… Hey! That rhymes! Jane, pain, chain, brain, strain, domain…"

The dentist who performed the surgery had followed after them to hand a brochure to Jane and give her a few final instructions as Maura kept rhyming.

"Everything went well with the surgery. It seems she had a very adverse reaction to the anesthesia," he informed her, "Nothing dangerous, just a little stronger than most patients. It'll wear out after a few hours, but she'll definitely have to be supervised. It should be no problem at all if you just put her right to bed; she'll be back to normal in the morning. Just follow all of the tips in the materials and call if you have any questions."

Maura was still rambling in the background, "…maintain, rain, obtain, Spain, ordain, plain…"

"Thank you, Doctor," Jane said as she began to lead Maura out the door.

"…mundane, campaign, Ukraine… " Just when Jane thought Maura had become uninterested with her rhyming game, she perked up again and added, "Superior ophthalmic vein!" She proudly nodded at Jane with wide eyes. Jane nodded back in approval while stifling laughter. As they passed through the doorway, Maura turned backwards unsteadily. "So long, my fellow medical professionals!" she called out to no one in particular.

"How do you feel?" Jane asked with concern in the hallway.

"Lightheaded… I feel as though I'm dreaming; walking in my sleep… that's called somnambulism, you know," Maura conveyed knowingly.

"Cool." Jane stated with a furtive smirk, indulging her friend's need to constantly spout scientific information.

"Do I look bad?" Maura asked self-consciously, tenderly touching her face.

"You look adorable," Jane accidentally let slip. She took a second to recover and added, "I mean, you kinda look like an adorable chipmunk." She puffed out her cheeks slightly to emphasize her point. Maura simply laughed and leaned heavier onto Jane.

By the time they reached Maura's house, Jane had learned exactly thirty-two random facts from her drugged friend. She had no idea if any of them were accurate, but she certainly was extremely entertained. Jane helped Maura upstairs to her bedroom, making sure to avoid making any noise that might attract her nosy mother.

As they leisurely climbed the stairs, Jane learned yet another interesting fact.

"Hippopotomonstrosesquippedal iophobia is the fear of long words. Isn't that just paradoxical?" Maura updated groggily.

Jane laughed and wondered how that piece of information possibly seemed relevant at this time. "Are you serious? That is absolutely ridiculous. How could you possibly know that? Is that the drugs talking?" She appreciated Maura's odd behavior because it distracted her from the fact that, since they left the dentist's office, Maura's hand had never left Jane's arm, even in the car.

"We need to make sure get to my tortoise eats food." Maura's verbal communication was becoming more and more unintelligible. Jane had to try hard not to laugh at that particularly jumbled sentence.

"Okie dokie," Jane humored her, "Sit." She settled Maura onto the chair next to her dresser and dug around in a drawer for something for her to sleep in. She extracted a pair of silk pajamas and carefully helped Maura get out of her clothes, averting her eyes respectfully.

"Guess what?" Maura slurred, obviously beginning to lose her brainpower for the night, "The ladies in the place… they thought we were dating."

Jane's first reaction was to reply, "I wish they were right." But she resisted saying those words, even though Maura would most likely forget they were ever uttered. She slipped the pajamas onto her smoothly and instead said, "That's… interesting, I guess."

Maura gasped loudly. "I wonder if _Bass_ thinks we're dating… but wait…" she paused, clumsily shrugging her shoulders and giggling, "how would he know what dating is?"

Jane considered the topic of conversation a little uncomfortable. After all, at least three women and a turtle assumed she and Maura were dating today, something that Jane desperately wanted to be true. It didn't feel right to talk about something like that with Maura still heavily anesthetized. She subtly changed the subject. "Man, those drugs really did a number on you. Come on, you should be lying down." She pulled her to her feet and tried to get her to walk across the room. Maura's knees gave out unexpectedly and she collapsed into Jane's arms inelegantly.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Jane grunted as she supported Maura's drooping body, "Let's get you to bed, Cheech." She hauled her over to her bed and forced her to crawl under the covers.

Once she was swathed with blankets and settled her head onto a pillow, Jane sat on the edge of the bed next to Maura.

"Jane, will you please stay with me?" Maura implored with another slur, her eyes beginning to slowly shut.

"Yeah, I'll stay." Jane kindly told her as she tucked her in snugly.

"Stay _here_," Maura demanded, motioning to the spot on the bed next to her with a limp wrist.

Jane softly chuckled. "Okay, I will," she guaranteed, "No problem."

Maura was as close to unconsciousness as a person could get while still being able to talk. Her head lolled to the side as she smiled and gazed at Jane through half-open eyes. "Aw, thank you," She made a lousy attempt at stroking Jane's face, missing completely and flopping her arm back onto the bed lifelessly. Her eyes drooped shut, and her body went limp, but just before she fell asleep she incoherently mumbled, "Jane, I love you."

Jane smiled with a significant hint of sadness. "I love you, too, Maura," she murmured softly, before bending down to plant a single kiss on the top of her head that Maura would never know about.


	5. The Return of Giovanni Gilberti

**5. The Return of Giovanni Gilberti**

The Dirty Robber was busier than usual when Jane hastily ducked in through the door. Outside, the cold Boston air was mingling with torrents of large fluffy snowflakes and a gust of them followed her into the bar before the door shut behind her. She shook her shoulders roughly to get rid of the snow that had accumulated there as she pushed through a crowd of people and searched for her colleagues. As she crossed the room she noticed the group she was looking for at a table tucked away in the corner. She couldn't help but smile when she saw Frost, Korsak, Frankie, Tommy, Cavanaugh, her mother, and several other members of BPD huddled together with drinks in their hands and emitting a chorus of boisterous laughter.

Korsak was the first person in the group to spot her. "Welcome to Blizzard Bash 2013!" he hollered with open arms when she reached their table. Everyone else greeted her noisily, and she was instantly aware she was without a doubt the only sober person there. Tommy kicked a chair out from under the table for her to sit on and Angela planted a big motherly kiss on her cheek once she'd settled onto it.

"I've never seen so much snow!" Jane marveled, wiping her mother's kiss off her face and glancing back out the window.

"Yeah, it's pretty crazy out there. And I hear it isn't supposed to stop until sometime late tomorrow." Korsak agreed. "What better thing to do but celebrate? Here you go, Rizzoli!" He slid a beer across the table to Jane who caught it skillfully before it reached the edge of the table.

"Alright! Thanks buddy!" she cheered. She took a large, refreshing swig and glanced around the bar. "Where's Maura?"

"Well," Frost told her, "Dr. Pike showed up and started awkwardly hitting on her again… so the guys and I have been protecting her." He gestured around to the other men at the table who nodded.

"_And_ feeding her shots." a rosy-cheeked Frankie leaned in to tattle with raised eyebrows.

"We didn't expect this, but dude…" Tommy murmured in awe, "She kept up with all of us. That woman can hold her liquor." Mumblings of agreement came from all the men around the table.

"Everyone can hold their liquor better than you, DUI-Boy," Frankie retorted at his brother.

"Hey!" Tommy protested, "I did my time, Bro."

While her two brothers continued bickering, Jane turned to the rest of the table. "You got Maura drunk?!" Jane yelled with both accusation and curiosity present in her tone. Her overprotective side worried about Maura being taken advantage of, yet her inquisitive side was excited to see how her friend acted while drunk. They had had drinks together many times, but she had never seen Maura get anything more than a little tipsy.

"I wouldn't necessarily say she's drunk… " Frost tactfully argued, "I'd say she's in a really, really, _really_ good mood."

As if on cue, Maura came cheerfully bounding through the crowd towards their table. She noticed Jane had joined them and her impossibly enormous smile grew even wider. "Jane!" she cried excitedly as she made her way over, "You finally made it through the blizzard!" She aggressively yanked Jane to her feet to wrap her in a warm hug.

Maura's tight squeeze initially forced a surprised grunt out of Jane's throat, but her freezing body, as well as her heart, was instantly warmed by her embrace. She wrapped her arms around Maura, who hadn't let go yet. After enjoying the contact for a few moments Jane gently pushed her back and placed her hands on Maura's shoulders to hold her steady to scrutinized her face. "You doin' okay?" she asked protectively.

"Absolutely! Mhm!" Maura replied with enthusiasm. She was definitely pretty drunk. Her cheeks were rosy and she was incredibly giddy, but she wasn't slurring her speech or falling over, so Jane decided that she was doing reasonably well. They sat back down at the table and Maura beamed at Jane before she tore herself away to address the group. "I made it to the bathroom and back with zero Pike-sightings." They all cheered for her as one of the bartenders tapped Maura on the shoulder. She whipped around in her chair to see what he wanted.

The bartender slid some form of martini in front of her. "From that gentleman over there by the bar," he said, pointing out the man. The man nodded his head at Maura and lifted his own glass.

Angela craned her neck to get a look at Maura's admirer and whistled. "Wouldja look at that stud?" she loudly whispered, lightly grabbing Maura by the arm. "He's so cute!"

Maura made eye contact with the man, smiled politely, and turned back to her friends. Jane furtively watched Maura's face to gauge her reaction, but Maura said nothing in response about the guy; she only sipped her drink and made a comment about the delicious it was. Angela looked as if she wanted to say more on the matter, but instead turned back to Sean to continue conversing.

One thing Jane found out about drunk Maura was that she was much more touchy-feely. Whenever she laughed at something somebody at the table said, she would reach over and lay a hand on Jane's forearm, but she didn't seem to realize that she was doing it. Jane left her arm resting on the table next to Maura on purpose, greedily taking advantage of every touch that occurred. Sometimes it was just a light brush, other times it was a firmer squeeze, but each time Maura did this, Jane's stomach fluttered excitedly and she smiled involuntarily. She wasn't even paying attention to what her friends were talking about, but she was thankful that people kept making Maura laugh.

After about an hour of careless merriment, their table was littered with dozens of empty glasses and everyone was cheerfully drunk. Jane's mother and her boss got up together to leave. Angela kissed her on the top of the head, but didn't make eye contact. "Goodnight sweetheart. Be safe."

"You too…" Jane grumbled in reply, not wanting to think about what they were going to do once they left the bar. As they walked away, Jane pouted dramatically at Maura who tilted her head supportively before bursting into uncontrollable laughter at Jane's desolate expression. As Maura laughed, Jane's frown deepened. "Let's talk about _anything _else," she griped.

After a few more chuckles, Maura sighed and agreed. "Actually, I have to use the ladies' room."

"Again?" Jane asked in disbelief. "You've gone like seven times in the last hour!"

"Well, the part of the brain called the hypothalamus produces arginine vasopressin, also known as antidiuretic hormone, that's primary function is to assist the kidneys in retaining water in the body. Alcohol inhibits that hormone, which causes more water-diluted urine to flood the bladder, therefore-"

"Maura! Go. Go!" Jane insisted, waving her hands impatiently. "You explain all of that and your bladder will explode."

Maura put one finger into the air and nodded, "Right. I'll be back." She slid off her chair and staggered unstably to the restroom. Jane smiled as she watched her friend leave, only looking away when Frost called her name.

"Yeah?" she answered, forcing herself to focus on him. He offered her a shot, holding one for himself as well. She smiled and accepted it.

They shared a few more shots, and Jane noticed Maura was still gone. "I'mma go check on 'er," she told him with a slight slur. She grabbed her bottle of beer and struggled to walk a straight line across the bar. As soon as she got to the bathroom door, it swung open and Maura tumbled out, almost barreling into Jane.

"Whoa! I've never seen you this drunk before." Jane chuckled as Maura stumbled over her own feet. She offered her hands to Maura for support to prevent another trip.

Maura grasped Jane's hands gratefully to keep her balance. She let Jane lead her a few feet away from the bathroom to remain out of other people's way. "Well, you know, I don't think I've ever consumed this much alcohol before," she admitted, blowing her hair away from her face inelegantly. She smiled coyly at her friend and Jane's head spun for another reason besides her alcohol consumption. It was then that she realized that she and Maura were extremely drunk together for the first time. Both of their guards were down and Jane could feel her self-restraint drastically slipping away as they stared into each other's eyes with rosy-cheeked grins and continued holding hands. Maura's loving expression suddenly transformed into surprise as she saw someone they knew approaching behind Jane. "Oh, hello," she said while squeezing Jane's hands and pulling her closer.

Confused, Jane turned around to encounter the tall, lanky body of Giovanni Gilberti. She greeted him politely and, as customary when he was near, Maura instinctively wrapped her arms around Jane's waist and tucked her head neatly beneath her chin. Out of habit, Jane pushed Maura away from her body defensively. "What brings you here, G?" she wondered as amicably as she could manage.

"I'm here for the party!" he replied merrily. A beautiful woman walked by and he was immediately distracted. "Whoa!" Without excusing himself from their company, he turned to pursue her, calling "Hey, good lookin'!"

Jane and Maura laughed and rolled their eyes as he left them just as suddenly as he had shown up.

That was when a heavily intoxicated Dr. Pike approached to make another sloppy attempt at wooing Maura.

"Yo, dude, don't waste your time on those chicks," Giovanni promptly advised him, as he returned from being shot down. "They're super hot, but they're not interested in what you've got to offer."

This started an argument between the two men that went on as if Jane and Maura weren't even there.

Pike turned to face Giovanni. "What is that supposed to mean, Beanpole?" he retorted haughtily.

"It means they're more interested in each other's boobies than any guy's sausage." Giovanni informed him crudely.

"That's preposterous! I beg to differ," Pike huffed.

"That's what I thought at first, too, but now it totally makes sense. Both of them are immune to my irresistible charms. Plus, they're always together, they look at each other like they want to screw each other's brains out, and they are always touching each other. If they were interested in dudes, I would have banged at least one of them."

"They are not lesbians. I should know." Pike bragged pompously, putting a hand on his puffed-out chest, "Detective Rizzoli has never bothered to hide her interest in me as a sexual companion."

Jane nearly spat out her beer. "Oh! He just said that…that _just_ happened…" she stated under her breath dazedly as Maura buried her face on her shoulder to conceal her scandalized amusement.

"What, are you serious?" Giovanni asked in alarm. Pike nodded arrogantly in return as Jane vigorously shook her head. He turned to Jane and Maura and goofily laughed, "You guys been yankin' my chain this whole time?"

"Well-" Maura began to interject. She looked at Jane to silently ask what she thought they should do. Jane frowned, not sure what to say either.

Giovanni took their hesitation as an affirmation of his question. "You guys were joking!" he chuckled, clapping his giant hands together noisily, "That's great! So hilarious. I always knew you were funny and hot." He paused and frowned in puzzlement. "I don't really get the joke…" Then, he perked up again and added, "But this means we can have another go at it, eh, Maura?" He advanced upon her suggestively, clearly not reading her dispassionate expression.

"Oh, Giovanni, I-" Maura began, her face falling with disappointment at the progression that the conversation had taken "I-Oh!" Maura yelped with surprise as he took her hand and yanked her away from Jane's side. She looked back at Jane with desperation in her eyes and silently mouthed, "Help!"

Jane understood that the only way to save her friend was to perpetuate the silly charade that they had started for this very reason. "Uh, actually," She sprang forward to grasp Maura's arm and drag her back to her side, murmuring, "There's no chain yanking going on at all. We really are together."

Giovanni frowned with disappointment and confusion. His under-developed cognitive skills were struggling through all of the contradictions in this conversation. Dr. Pike opened his mouth to challenge their claim, but suddenly his over-indulgence of alcohol caused him to become ill. With no more words and a pale face, he dashed to the bathroom and out of their discussion. This small distraction gave Giovanni enough time to gather his thoughts. "Nah," he said, shaking his head, "I don't believe you this time." Giovanni said, "Since that dude seems to think you're lying… I'm gonna ask everyone else here." he spotted Korsak tottering by on his way to the bar and stopped him with one of his long arms. "Hey buddy, are Jane and Maura together?"

Jane gave her ex-partner a pleading look that went unnoticed. Korsak, slightly intoxicated, confusedly looked from Giovanni to his female colleagues a few times before responding with a hearty chortle. "Together?!" He laughed so hard that tears sprung to his eyes. "Hell no!" he chuckled while wiping them away with his sleeve, "Besides, I think Dr. Isles is a little out of Jane's league."

"Hey!" Jane protested angrily after him as he sauntered away, still laughing. Maura made an approving expression at his comment and grinned mockingly at her.

Giovanni smirked with the satisfaction of being right and held up two fingers in front of his face. "That's two." Then, it dawned on him what he had been right about and he frowned. "Wait…why do you only act like you're lesbians in front of me? Am I that undesirable?" He looked as if he was going to cry. He buried his face in his giant hands.

"No, no, Giovanni, you're great!" Maura assured him, glaring at Jane for backup.

Jane was a lot less sympathetic. She was tempted to just agree with him and be done with it, but Maura gave her a pleading look and she rolled her eyes and said, "Yeah, you aren't undesirable to some people, I bet…" Maura glared at her and she added, "G, we really are together."

"I'll believe you after I ask them," Giovanni said, indicating their group in the corner of the bar. Without another word, he started towards them to do so.

"We have to convince him." Maura pleaded, turning to Jane.

"Yeah, but if we do… _that_… to get rid of him, it'll hurt your chances with someone you might actually be interested in," She nodded her head towards the attractive man over by the bar who had shown his interest in Maura.

Maura waved Jane's comment off while uttering, "Psh! Who cares? I'm not here to meet men."

A giant smile stretched across Jane's face. She made an effort to conceal it by raising her beer to her lips for a sip. Once she trusted herself enough to speak without giving away her giddiness, she muttered, "Your choice, I guess."

They glanced at Giovanni, who had gotten distracted by another attractive female on his way to question their friends. As he flirted, they formulated a plan to alert their party about their situation, sending a text to everyone who Giovanni was planning on interrogating and telling them to play along.

Giovanni eventually made his way over to Frost, Frankie, and Tommy and as he talked to them, he kept glancing back at Jane and Maura. "Let's dance," Maura insisted and pulled Jane's body up against her own without waiting for a response. They danced slowly, and Maura's hands wandered from Jane's back to her hips. She hummed lightly, and kept gently squeezing Jane's hips.

Jane completely lost herself in their act. She couldn't tell if what Maura was doing was real or part of the act, but she honestly didn't care. She took full advantage of this chance to indulge her desires under the safety of a ruse. She was able to breathe in Maura's sweet scent without being afraid she would notice. She was able to run her fingertips across the silky skin on her exposed arms and pull her body as close to her as she could. She was able to be herself, with no fear of rejection or vulnerability. At least with Maura pretending to feel affection for her, Jane could pretend that it was true without jeopardizing everything they had built over the last several years. In her happiness, the bar seemed empty, and she and Maura were the only ones there. That was all that mattered to her in that moment. Even if it was fake for Maura, she was glad to imagine what her life could be. Neither of them even noticed when a man showed up next to them and interrupted with a cliché suggestion of a three-some. After they finally realized that he was talking to them, Jane snapped out of her reverie to see what he wanted. It was the man who had bought Maura her drink earlier, and it seemed he had had a few more since then as well.

"You ladies are so gorgeous," he crooned, "You look like you could use a little testosterone over here. I've been watching you getting pretty cozy with each other. The only thing you seem to be missing is a man to get in on this."

Jane laughed scornfully and tried to step away from him. He followed after them and added, "You know, I've always dreamed of nailing two chicks at a time."

Jane raised her eyebrows, half in amusement, and half in disgust. She noticed he was swaying slightly and had the hiccups. "He's piss drunk." She muttered and tried to pull Maura around him. The man moved his body to block their path. He seemed to sense he had no chance with Jane and changed his tactic to landing Maura again.

"Hey wait," he said to her. "That was me who bought you that drink."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I get treated to a lot of drinks." Maura blurted. Alcohol apparently dulled her politeness a bit, and Jane was glad to see her sassy side.

"I bet." He bit his bottom lip and grunted. "You are one hot piece of-"

"She's not interested, 'kay, Bud?" Jane asserted as she took a step closer to him. He scoffed.

"She's right," Maura agreed, and she wrapped her arms around Jane's neck, reiterating her statement with her body language.

"Are you kiddin' me?" the man snorted at Maura. "You're turning _me_ down for _her_? Honey, I've got something she can never give you." He made an obscene motion with his hips as he spoke. Though he was drunk and misogynistic, the man was voicing all of Jane's secret insecurities, cutting her deeper than anyone could possibly guess. Her body was shaking with fury and mortification, but luckily no one could tell how much this man's insults were hurting her. She felt Maura's hand jump to her arm and squeeze it reassuringly. Maura knew what severe damage a tough and provoked Jane Rizzoli could inflict, and she was silently warning Jane that this battle wasn't worth fighting. The gentle contact calmed her temper temporarily. For Maura, she fought every fiber of her being that was begging her to beat the crap out of the guy.

"Alright, Guy, you've had your fun," she growled threateningly through gritted teeth as she placed herself more securely between the drunken menace and Maura. "I really think you better get going."

The brute turned his gaze towards Jane and leaned in towards her. He muttered just loud enough for Jane to hear him, "Nobody asked you, dyke."

Jane froze in horror, revolted by the insult. Normally, anyone that mouthed off to her got his dose of vengeance, but the words were so close to the bone that she was temporary immobilized. Hearing that word—the word she dreaded hearing most of all—caused her stomach to clench painfully and the color to drain from her face. Her shock quickly morphed into rage and she instinctively rolled her hands into fists and took a step forward. Before she could retaliate, she saw a flash of movement from the corner of her eye as Maura threw herself past her protective stance and landed a harsh blow across their aggressors jaw, sending him reeling backwards into a crowd of onlookers.

Maura stared disbelievingly at what she had done, then looked at Jane with wide eyes and mouthed, "Ouch!" as she shook out her wounded hand aggressively.

Jane gawked at the scene with her mouth wide open, astonished by Maura's uncharacteristic stroke of wrath and inexplicably turned on. "_Oh my God, I am so in love with this woman!"_ she thought agonizingly. She didn't have much time to dwell on the insanely unexpected thing that had just happened, as the man who Maura had punched was standing up to retaliate.

He stumbled towards Maura, pointing accusatorily and yelling, "You can't d—Whoa!"

Swiftly, Jane had grabbed him by the arm and flawlessly whipped him around to position him in an immobilizing hold with both hands behind his back. From there, she shoved him roughly up against the brick wall. "Oh, I think I forgot to mention," she leaned in and growled into his ear. "I'm a cop." He stopped his futile struggle against her hold and she heard him faintly mutter something along the lines of, "Oh, shit…" She grinned with malevolent satisfaction. Her adrenaline was pumping, and she had many other things she wanted to say and do to him, but ultimately, she decided she just wanted him out of her sight. She violently grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and shoved him towards the door barking, "Get the hell out of here!" He quickly hobbled off with no other comments.

Everyone who had witnessed that exchange stood in a shocked silence. No one except for Jane and Maura had heard exactly what the man had said to deserve his harsh punishment. After mumbling a bit, the crowd returned to their own conversations, leaving them alone to absorb what had happened.

At first they just stared at each other. Finally, Maura broke the silence. "Jane." she said softly.

"What?" Jane murmured, her body shaking from her fading anger and anticipation for what might happen next.

Maura blinked twice before muttering, "I just punched somebody…"

And that was all Jane could take. She launched her body across the space between them and pulled Maura towards her by the back of he neck. Without thinking, she kissed her, and was overjoyed when she felt Maura returning her kiss. Her lips were even softer than she had imagined.

In the whirlwind of their first kiss, neither of them noticed that Giovanni had approached them again. "Wow!" he cried loudly, causing them both to jump and look up at him. "Nobody can fake a kiss like that. I guess you guys really were telling the truth!"


	6. Combat in Close Contact

**6. Combat in Close Contact**

Jane, deeply engrossed in some paperwork, didn't look up when she saw Maura approaching her desk. "Good morning," she muttered to the doctor while idly shifting a cup of coffee to the spot where Maura usually sat next to her.

Maura didn't sit where she usually did. Instead, she stopped and stood in a daze a few feet away. She waited for Jane to look up at her, and when she didn't she stamped her foot on the floor. "I just got mugged!" she cried desolately, raising her hands up and letting them smack down to her sides.

"What!?" Jane turned her head and shouted, her aloof disposition immediately switching into extreme vigilante mode. She shot to her feet and her hands clenched into hard fists. "Where? Did you get a look at him?" She grabbed her gun from her desk and continued, "I'll pound that piece of shit into-" Maura was shaking her head, so she stopped mid-sentence. Realizing she hadn't even checked to see if Maura was okay, she forced her harsh, irate reaction away and replaced it with a softer concern. "I'm so sorry," she said as she set down her gun and moved over to her friend to look her over. She gingerly placed her hands on her shoulders and examined her face. "Are you okay?"

Maura nodded, but looked completely dejected. "I had to park a few blocks away. He came out of nowhere and grabbed me. I was so surprised, I didn't even… Well, I- He took my bag and ran when he saw someone else walking down the street." She still seemed a bit shaken up, but refused to sit down.

"God, I can't believe it." Jane growled as she began to get worked up again. "What kind of asshole would mug a—well, he was an asshole with a death wish, that's for sure!" She picked up her gun again and started making her way to the elevator, following her instincts to bring whomever wronged Maura to justice.

Maura placed her hand on Jane's arm to stop her. "Please, it's only a Carl Valencio purse…" she reasoned somewhat unconvincingly, "Just stay here with me. Please?" She hadn't taken her hand off of Jane's arm yet, and as usual, Jane did what she was told as soon as she looked into those pleading hazel eyes.

"Okay," Jane assured her, "I'll stay. Just please sit." She convinced her friend to rest in the chair by her desk and grudgingly let go of the feelings of vengeance that were brewing within her. "At least he didn't take your shoes," she joked, causing Maura to lightly laugh as she was rubbing her forehead. Jane stood behind Maura and stroked her soft hair comfortingly as Frost and Korsak walked in. They briefly opened their mouths to ask what was going on but a curt shake of Jane's head told them not to bother. They kept quiet and went to Korsak's desk in the corner to give them their privacy.

Since she was too distracted, Maura hadn't even noticed them come in. "Ugh… I'm so embarrassed," she mumbled with her face pressed into her hands.

"Why? You didn't do anything wrong!" Jane responded a bit harshly. She softened her demeanor and added "Maura, are you sure you're okay?"

Maura sighed and brushed her hair away from her face. "I'm fine, I'm just so shocked. It's broad daylight! It's a busy neighborhood! It's-"

"It's Boston." Jane interrupted knowingly. She hated seeing Maura upset, and needed to make her feel better. She sat in the chair next to her and placed a hand on her knee. "That can happen to anyone in this city. In fact, I'm surprised this hasn't happened to you before, the fancy way you dress." Maura chuckled and rolled her eyes.

"Jane. I feel like I could have been more prepared for something like this." Maura paused. "Will you teach me some self defense?"

Jane smiled at Maura's endearing vulnerability, then sighed, "What, you want more boxing lessons?"

"Well… Maybe we could take it a step further?" Maura implored timidly. "Maybe some more advanced techniques?"

"Oh, I see," Jane said, nodding. "Yeah, I guess we could go over some things. Maybe tonight? Are you free?"

Maura nodded with a small smile. Jane smiled back but their conversation was interrupted when her partner walked over to interrupt. "Jane, we got a lead on that stabbing case," Frost told her with an apologetic glance at Maura. "We gotta go to West End to question some witnesses."

"'Kay, duty calls," Jane told Maura with a pat on her knee as she rose to leave. "Come over tonight, okay?" she said with a reassuring smile as she followed Frost to the elevators. She turned around just before she left the room, scrunched her nose and added, "And don't wear anything… girly."

Maura shook her head and giggled at her teasing. Jane was happy to have cheered her up.

In her apartment later that night, Jane shoved her couch and coffee table to one side of the living room and threw down a giant tumbling mat. She looked around the room and at herself to make sure she had everything they needed for their training session. "_Workout clothes? Check. Lots of space? Check. Floor mat? Check." _She heard a knock at her front door and went to answer it. "_Patience? We'll see…"_

Maura stood waiting at the door, dressed in a pair of tight fitting yoga pants and an even tighter fitting tank top. "Hello!" she chirped as she made her way into Jane's apartment. "I am ready. Let's do this!" She bent down to put something into her bag.

Jane shut the door and was about to say something when she caught sight of Maura's backside. All words were lost as she paused to stare. She caught herself licking her lips and shook her head forcefully to bring herself back to the moment. "Okay! Yes. Let's do this." she was finally able to mutter as she tiptoed around Maura and onto the soft mat in the middle of the room. As Maura straightened up and joined her, Jane took in the entirety of Maura's outfit again with one sweep of her eyes. She then quickly glanced at her own outfit-her BPD t-shirt on its third wear between washings and loose-fitting shorts-and assessed Maura's yet again. "_She even looks sexy in work-out clothes," _she thought irritably as her eyes passed over Maura's bust. She felt her heart clench as she found the ample cleavage between her breasts, only enhanced by the pressure of the tight fitting top.

She forced her eyes back to Maura's face reluctantly, praying that Maura hadn't noticed her gratuitous gaze at her chest.

"What first?" an oblivious Maura asked excitedly. She was always eager to learn, especially when Jane was her teacher. A few quick springs on the toes of her shoes prompted Jane's eyes to wander down again, automatically drawn to her bouncing breasts.

Angry with her own indiscretion, Jane spun away from the object of her lust and tried to get down to business to distract herself from her wildly inappropriate thoughts. "I borrowed this from the Academy," she grunted as she hoisted up a large, man-shaped dummy. "So this here is your attacker. Okay. Come around here and grab him like this." She demonstrated what she meant, not noticing Maura's confused expression.

Maura frowned. "Wait!" she exclaimed, "I thought _you_ were going to be the bad guy!"

Jane paused, then slowly muttered, "Uh, no. I-"

"I really feel as though a live attacker will be more beneficial to my learning and comprehension of these techniques." Maura argued, putting one finger up into the air as she spoke.

"I'm not going to attack you, Maura." Jane told her sternly, with a hint of a chuckle.

Maura scoffed. "Oh, please. Don't worry. You won't hurt me. Besides, I'm sure you learned with real attackers."

"Yeah. So?" Jane returned defiantly, "That's different." Part of her did worry about hurting Maura. Even after all of their tough undertakings over the years, and no matter how many times Maura proved herself to be a strong and capable woman, Jane always saw her as a delicate thing that she needed to protect. Maybe it was because the thought of losing Maura was unimaginable. But no matter what the reason was, Jane had an unspoken vow to protect her friend from any harm that may befall her.

"Jane…" Maura protested firmly, her face displaying something between a glare and a pout.

Finally, Jane had to relent. "Okay, fine." Maura smiled as Jane approached the mat and readied herself. "But, I'll go easy on you, okay?"

"Give me all you've got, Detective. I need to learn." Maura egged her on, bouncing on the balls of her feet again, which caused her curly ponytail to sway back and forth behind her head. Jane made sure to look at the swinging hair instead of her chest this time.

Jane briefly smiled with adoration at Maura's cute perseverance before forcing a breath of air out and getting started. "Okay. Here we go then." She walked around behind Maura. "If they grabbed you from behind like this," Jane explained as she demonstrated, wrapping her arms tightly around Maura's arms and body. Her face brushed up against Maura's bare neck as she held her firmly as an attacker would. When she did this, Maura's irresistible sweet scent floated past Jane's nostrils and she realized there was another reason she did not want to be the attacker. The thought of hurting Maura had been the only thing on her mind. She hadn't even considered the fact that they were going to have to be in such close contact. She closed her eyes and allowed herself to take a second to enjoy the feeling of Maura's soft skin on her cheek and the aroma of some kind of exotic fruit exuding from Maura's hair. Realizing that she had stopped speaking in the middle of her explanation and Maura was waiting patiently in her grasp for her next instruction, she cleared her throat and continued, "See how my arms are wrapped around your neck? Try to get out."

Maura followed her instructions and struggled against Jane's hold to no avail. "I can't," she eventually grunted. "You're so strong, Jane."

One side of Jane's lips curled into a smile, but she kept her lesson going. "Now. Place one hand here, under my elbow. Use the other hand to grasp my wrist here." She waited as Maura did as she was told. "Those hand positions will give you the leverage you need. Now, we'll do this in slow motion. Take a big step back with your left leg. Nope. The other way. Behind your right foot. Good. While you're stepping backwards, you wanna push up as hard as you can on the two spots that I showed you and twist your body out, following your left leg. Got it?"

"I believe so." Maura answered, concentrating on her next task. "Like this?" She stepped back to the right of Jane with her left foot and pushed upwards with her hands as she was instructed. Jane loosened her grip as Maura slipped out.

"Great!" Jane praised. "See? And now you end up sort of behind the attacker."

"Very handy. Can I try it again?"

"Of course, but this time faster." Jane agreed as she got back into position behind her. "Remember, you do all the moves at the same time. Ready? Go!"

Maura swung her left leg back and twisted out of Jane's arms swiftly, and this time Jane didn't let go on purpose. The move worked correctly and Maura escaped from her grip easily. "Did I do it right?"

"Yeah, you actually did," Jane chuckled, "I'm impressed."

Maura clapped her hands excitedly and cheered. "Then what would I do?" she prodded.

"Then," Jane answered, "you would run."

"Run?"

"Yep. Run away." Jane repeated with a nod.

"What if I didn't want to run away? What if I wanted to inflict some damage?"

Jane frowned. "You would run. It's the safest thing and so that's what you would do."

Maura let out an exasperated breath. "But what is the next step in the _training_?" she insisted, obviously thoroughly enjoying this lesson.

Jane tried not to smile, but couldn't resist. "Fine, I'll teach you a simple hold. Depending on the size of your attacker, the next thing you'd wanna do is make sure that they can't attack you again by limiting their movement. Pretend you just got out of my hold."

"Can't I practice it again?" Maura asked innocently.

Jane hesitated. She wanted to be a good teacher, but what kind of a teacher gets extremely turned on by demonstrations with her student? Finally, she agreed. She wrapped her arms once more around Maura's neck, hating herself for the butterflies whirling in her stomach at the contact of their skin. Before she could instruct Maura in the steps again, Maura spun out of her grip flawlessly and was in position behind her.

"Ha!" Maura exclaimed in celebration.

"Impressive," Jane admitted, "Alright, from here this is what I want you to do." She swallowed and prepared herself for even more contact with her beautiful friend. "Throw your arms over my shoulders. Go ahead and do that now." Maura did so. "Now bend them down around and hook them under my arms." When this step was done, Maura had to move closer. Her body was now pressed up against Jane's back. "Last step," Jane paused, having to swallow again. She was starting to breathe a bit faster. "Pull my arms back and place your hands in the middle of my back. One on top of the other, like this."

Maura nodded her head and tried it. Once she was in the final position with Jane's arms restricted behind her back she looked at her and cried, "Jane! Am I hurting you?"

"No," Jane chuckled, turning her head to speak to her, "It looks more painful than it actually is. This is pretty good. You can even pull a little bit harder, too. Bring your elbows down to your sides to tighten the hold." Maura obeyed and Jane's arms were forced tighter behind her back. "All you need to do now is get into a sturdy stance and lean back. Then, you have complete control over me." Jane frowned at the ironic truth behind those last words.

"But, I'm sure you could get out of this, right?" Maura asked as she leaned back, pulling Jane with her.

Jane took a breath with some difficulty, the hold straining her abdomen. "The hold is tight around my arms so I can't wiggle out. The way you're using your body to bend me backwards puts me off balance so I have no leverage to push off on the ground," she explained patiently. Maura was so close to her, she could feel her breath on the back of her neck. It sent pleasant chills down her spine. She needed some space between them before she lost control. "Make sure you keep your face back though." She moved her own head back. "If you get too close, I can come back like this and head butt you." Just imagining how close Maura's face was to her neck caused her breaths to come more rapidly.

Maura mistook her shallower breaths as physical discomfort from the hold and immediately released her. "I'm-I'm sorry!" she stammered worriedly as Jane turned to face her.

"I'm fine. That was great!" Jane praised, attempting to breathe normally despite her ever-increasing and unsolicited sexual excitement.

Maura's thirst for knowledge was seemingly unquenchable that night. She requested learning move after move, each becoming more complicated and each requiring more physical contact. Jane only obliged under the pretence of being a thorough instructor. However, she was becoming increasingly turned on. Each position she taught, though all of them completely innocent, were inevitably making her imagine a sexual position. Part of her thought it was torture, but the other part was loving how close Maura's body was to her own. She couldn't get enough of the heat coming off her body. She savored the smell of her hair whenever she got close enough to smell it. Her skin almost vibrated with excitement every time their skin came together.

Sometimes when Maura would mess up one of the positions, they would laugh until she got it right. As time went on, Maura began to take her training a little less seriously. She was having a blast learning and playing around with Jane.

Jane was glad she had no idea what was going through her head. Some very dirty thoughts at times.

"Now what?" Maura asked through a giggle from her pose in yet another grip.

"You already know!" Jane laughed back. "Push, duck, and spin."

Maura was still laughing as she recited her actions as she was doing them. "Push…" She pushed her back into Jane's chest. "Duck…" She bent her knees swiftly. "and… spi-woah!" As she spun, she tripped over her own feet and tumbled into Jane's chest headfirst.

Not expecting the last part of the maneuver to go awry, Jane collapsed backwards onto the mat, Maura falling with her. Jane landed hard, the wind knocked out of her chest, and she grunted in pain as the other woman landed on top of her.

Maura's face was inches away from Jane's, their breasts smashed together. One of Maura's hands landed beside Jane's head, the other got caught between her own body and Jane's crotch.

Jane felt Maura's hand graze her between the legs. That minimal contact and her already unbearable arousal shot an amazing sensation through her body and almost resulted in a small orgasm. She gasped out loud. _"Holy shit. I. Am. Wet." _Jane closed her eyes and thought with horror. She held her breath until Maura's hand was removed from that area.

After the first few seconds of shock, Maura broke out into laughter again. "Are you okay?" she asked, trying to stop laughing but failing.

Jane took a deep breath. She couldn't handle this intense sexual tension any longer. "No." she replied quietly, immediately wiping the smile off of Maura's face. Maura hastily clamored off her friend and looked at her with concern. Jane sat up and turned her back to Maura. "I think we should stop," she continued, struggling to keep the pain out of her voice. She silently begged her heart to slow down.

Maura remained kneeling behind Jane, suddenly sad and speechless. She didn't know what to say as Jane slowly stood up. She turned around and wordlessly offered her hand to help Maura off the ground. Before taking her hand, Maura scrutinized her face, trying to understand what she was feeling or if she was hurt. She had a hard time reading her friend's expression. After Jane pulled her to her feet, she finally murmured, "I'm very sorry, Jane. I didn't mean to..."

Jane looked at the ground and took a shaky breath. Being a few feet away from Maura was already making her feel a bit better. She raised her eyes to meet Maura's, noticing how upset she looked. Maura had no idea what had just happened from Jane's point of view. She had no idea how hard it was for Jane to resist pulling her into a kiss while she had been on top of her. She had no idea how damp her panties were after being touched by Maura.

"I'm just tired." Jane lied. Maura smiled, but her eyes were still shrouded with bewilderment. "I'm sorry." Jane averted her eyes again and lightly kicked the dummy that was lying by her feet.

Maura hesitated before taking a tentative step forward. "I… hope I didn't hurt you."

Seeing how worried Maura was made Jane desperate to fix it. She shook her head and smiled reassuringly. "I'm not hurt. I'm okay, I'm fine. That just took me by surprise and you knocked the breath out of me." She shook her head again and repeated, "I'm not hurt."

Maura smiled, this time seeming reassured. Jane walked into the kitchen to get them a drink of water and used the time to fully calm herself. She tried to figure out how to erase the awkward tension and landed on her old reliable method: humor. As she handed Maura a glass of water she grumbled, "I'd hate to be a Boston mugger once I release you onto the streets, Slugger. You're really good."

"Except for that last move…" Maura said with a wince.

"I think you'll be okay without that one." Jane smiled, glad to be feeling somewhat normal again. She looked at the clock. It was much later than she had thought.

"I should probably get going." Maura admitted. She grabbed her bag and started heading for the door.

At the door, she turned back and said, "Thank you so much for teaching me… After today, I really needed some confidence. And I had a lot of fun." Maura tilted her head as if something just occurred to her. "You know, I'm fairly certain that you can make anything fun."

"Challenge accepted." Jane joked.

"Goodnight, Jane," Maura murmured.

"Goodnight, Maura." Jane replied.

After the door closed, Jane threw herself onto the mat still on the floor and stared at the ceiling. She replayed the entire day in her head and, after much thought, decided that she wouldn't change a thing. She'd much rather take an evening of torture with the woman she loved than nothing at all.


End file.
